Endoscopic instrument

ABSTRACT

An endoscopic instrument includes: a body extending in a lengthwise direction, and having a first channel and a second channel parallel to each other; and an optical portion provided with an incident surface formed at an end part of the first channel so as to receive an external image, the optical portion disposed at the first channel, wherein the second channel is formed such that a laser module is insertable thereinto, and the laser module is configured to output laser in a direction crossing the lengthwise direction, and wherein the incident surface is formed to be inclined from a sectional surface of the first channel, such that the optical portion captures an image disposed on a path of the outputted laser. With such a configuration, a surgery can be performed through a single punched hole.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

This specification relates to an endoscopic instrument used for medicaltreatment, and more particularly, to an endoscopic instrument forsurgery for joints or part around the joints.

2. Background of the Invention

Generally, an endoscopic instrument is more preferred than an open-typesurgery apparatus. The reason is because recovery time after surgery andcomplications are reduced when a wound is small. Accordingly, variousendoscopic instruments for surgery, suitable for precise arrangement ofan operation portion of an end part thereof at a desired surgical placethrough a cannular of a trocar, have been developed.

Each of the endoscopic instruments includes a long body between a handleportion manipulated by a clinician, and an operation portion of an endpart thereof. The body is formed as a straight line so as to be insertedinto a human body, and the operation portion is arranged at the end partof the body so as to be perpendicular to the straight line.

An impingement syndrome, an object to be treated by a joint endoscope,occurs due to a small space by collision and pressure by multiplied softtissues, and due to pressure and collision by protruded bones ordeformed bones. In the past, the impingement syndrome was called frozenshoulders.

In the case of the joint endoscope which treats the impingementsyndrome, two holes are punched for surgery because a surgical spot istoo small. However, efforts to minimize the number of holes formed at apatient's body, or developments of an apparatus for treating theimpingement syndrome more simply are ongoing inactively.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, an aspect of the detailed description is to provide anendoscopic instrument capable of preventing tendon rupture prior torupture due to an impingement syndrome, and capable of performing relieffrom pain due to collision and improved exercise in a more rapid andsimple manner.

Another aspect of the detailed description is to provide a jointendoscopic instrument capable of performing a surgery by punching asingle hole.

To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purposeof this specification, as embodied and broadly described herein, thereis provided an endoscopic instrument, including: a body extending in alengthwise direction, and having a first channel and a second channelparallel to each other; and an optical portion provided with an incidentsurface formed at an end part of the first channel so as to receive anexternal image, the optical portion disposed at the first channel. Thesecond channel may be formed such that a laser module is insertablethereinto, and the laser module may be configured to output laser in adirection crossing the lengthwise direction. The incident surface may beformed to be inclined from a sectional surface of the first channel,such that the optical portion captures an image disposed on a path ofthe outputted laser.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, an output surfaceof the laser module may be formed to face a height direction of the bodyperpendicular to the lengthwise direction, and the incident surface maybe formed to face one point on the path.

The incident surface may be formed on a plane where the output surfaceof the laser module is tilted based on an axis of the lengthwisedirection and an axis of a widthwise direction of the body.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the outputsurface of the laser module may protrude more than the incident surfacein the lengthwise direction. The first and second channels may bearranged in a widthwise direction of the body perpendicular to thelengthwise direction.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the secondchannel may be formed such that a burr module not the laser module isinsertable thereinto, and a cutting blade of the burr module may beconfigured to cut an object which is disposed in a direction crossingthe lengthwise direction. The incident surface may be formed to be lowerthan the output surface of the laser module or the cutting blade of theburr module in a height direction of the body.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the lasermodule may be provided with an optical unit for changing a movingdirection of the outputted laser in the second channel, such that thelaser is output in a direction crossing the lengthwise direction.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, an opening maybe formed at an end part of the body, such that the incident surface andthe output surface of the laser module are exposed to outsidetherethrough. The opening may be formed to be open in the heightdirection and the lengthwise direction of the body, respectively.

To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purposeof this specification, as embodied and broadly described herein, thereis also provided an endoscopic instrument having a body formed along anX-axis, wherein the body includes: a first channel where an opticalportion for receiving an external image is arranged; and a secondchannel formed such that a laser module or a burr module is insertablethereinto, formed along the X-axis, and arranged close to the firstchannel along a Y-axis, and wherein the optical portion is formed toreceive an image of an object, in a state where an output surface of thelaser module or a cutting blade of the burr module faces the objectdisposed on a Z-axis.

The present invention can have the following advantages.

Firstly, the endoscopic instrument can perform a surgery through asingle punched hole, on a narrow region such as a joint. Accordingly,disadvantages such as a long hospitalization, a surgery under generalanesthesia, increased costs and a slow recovery, can be solved.

Secondly, since the laser module and the burr module are replaceablewith each other, various surgeries based on a clinician's determinationcan be performed.

Thirdly, since an image is received in a state where a joint mirror istoward a direction different from an introduction direction of theendoscopic instrument, a surgical scene can be obtained in the same orsimilar direction as or to the conventional direction, even by the jointmirror integrated with the laser module or the burr module.

Further scope of applicability of the present application will becomemore apparent from the detailed description given hereinafter. However,it should be understood that the detailed description and specificexamples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the invention, aregiven by way of illustration only, since various changes andmodifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art from the detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments andtogether with the description serve to explain the principles of theinvention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a conceptual view illustrating a surgery method according toan embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of an endoscopic instrument accordingto the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of part ‘A’ in FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4A and 4C are sectional views taken along lines ‘B-B’ and ‘C-C’ inFIG. 3;

FIG. 4B is a sectional view illustrating a modification example of FIG.4A;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a case where a burr module hasbeen amounted to the endoscopic instrument of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a surgery method using the endoscopicinstrument of FIG. 2; and

FIGS. 7 to 10 are conceptual views illustrating other embodiments of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Description will now be given in detail of preferred configurations ofan endoscopic instrument according to the present invention, withreference to the accompanying drawings. The same or similar referencenumerals will be provided to the same or similar components as or tocomponents of the aforementioned embodiment, and the same explanationswill be omitted.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual view illustrating a surgery method according toan embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, a laser module (burr module) 10 is introduced to ahuman body in one direction, and a joint mirror 20 is additionallyintroduced to the human body in a direction crossing the one direction,thereby capturing a surgical scene. Such a surgery can treat animpingement syndrome. However, such a surgery has a problem in punchingtwo holes at a human body. The endoscopic instrument of the presentinvention can treat an impingement syndrome by punching a single hole ata human body, as a joint mirror and a laser module are integrated witheach other.

However, in the case where the joint mirror and the laser module areintegrated with each other, a clinician performs a surgery using thelaser module (burr module) at a front side and lateral sides whileviewing the joint mirror at a rear side. This may cause the cliniciannot to utilize his or her accumulated clinical experiences. To solvesuch a problem, the endoscopic instrument 100 of the present inventionis configured so that a clinician can utilize his or her accumulatedclinical experiences, with a structure that the joint mirror and thelaser module are integrated with each other.

In this case, the endoscopic instrument 100 is introduced to the humanbody in a different direction from the conventional direction, forsurgery. According to the surgery method using the endoscopicinstrument, when the joint mirror and the laser module are separatelyprovided, a single hole may be punched. Further, the endoscopicinstrument 100 is introduced to the human body in a different path froma path of the joint mirror and the laser module. This is very useful toa narrow spot around the shoulder.

Hereinafter, a structure of the endoscopic instrument 100 applicable tothe surgery method will be explained in more detail.

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of an endoscopic instrument accordingto the present invention. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of part ‘A’ in FIG.2. FIGS. 4A and 4C are sectional views taken along lines ‘B-B’ and ‘C-C’in FIG. 3. FIG. 4B is a sectional view illustrating a modificationexample of FIG. 4A. FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a casewhere a burr module has been amounted to the endoscopic instrument ofFIG. 2.

Referring to the drawings, the endoscopic instrument 100 includes ahandle portion (H) manipulated by a clinician, a body 110 extending fromthe handle portion (H) in the form of a straight line, and an operationportion formed at an end part of the body 110.

The body 110 of the endoscopic instrument 100 according to the presentinvention includes a first channel 111 and a second channel 112.

The first and second channels 111, 112 are partitioned from each otherby a partition wall inside the body 110, and are formed in parallel toeach other.

More specifically, an optical portion 120 (or joint mirror) forreceiving an external image is disposed at the first channel 111, andthe second channel 112 is formed so that a laser module 130 or a burrmodule 140 can be inserted thereinto.

In this case, the body 110 and the first and second channels 111, 112are long formed in an X-axis direction (lengthwise direction), and thesecond channel 112 is disposed close to the first channel 111 in aY-axis direction (widthwise direction). An output surface 131 of thelaser module 130, or a cutting blade 141 of the burr module 140 areformed to face an object disposed on a Z-axis. That is, laser is notoutput in an X-axis direction (introduction direction of the endoscopicinstrument 100), but is output in a Z-axis direction (height direction)perpendicular to the X-axis direction.

As shown, the output surface 131 of the laser module 130 may be providedwith a plurality of output openings, and the laser module 130 may beformed such that laser is output from each of the output openings. Someof the plurality of output openings may be used for water injection andwater suction, not for laser output.

The optical portion 120 is formed to receive an image of an object, in astate where the output surface 131 of the laser module 130 or thecutting blade 141 of the burr module 140 faces the object disposed on aZ-axis.

For instance, the second channel 112 is formed so that the laser module130 can be inserted thereinto, and the laser module 130 is configured tooutput laser to a direction crossing the lengthwise direction. Referringto FIG. 4A, the laser module 130 is provided with an optical unit forchanging a moving direction of the outputted laser in the second channel112. The optical unit may be a reflection mirror 132 a, a laser opticalfiber 132 b, etc.

Referring to FIG. 4A, the laser module 130 may be provided with areflection mirror 132 disposed to reflect the outputted laser in thesecond channel 112.

For instance, the reflection mirror 132 is disposed to be inclined froma sectional surface of the second channel 112, such that a path oflaser, proceeding toward an X-axis direction from an end part of thesecond channel 112, is changed to a Z-axis direction. FIG. 4Billustrates an example to gradually change a moving path of laser usingthe laser optical fiber 132 b not the reflection mirror 132 a.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the endoscopic instrument 100 includes theoptical portion 120. The optical portion 120 is provided with anincident surface 121 formed at an end part of the first channel 111 soas to receive an external image. The incident surface 121 is formed tobe inclined from a sectional surface of the first channel 111, such thatthe optical portion 120 captures an image disposed on a path of theoutputted laser. In this case, the first and second channels 111, 112are arranged to be adjacent to a Y-axis direction, and are formed inparallel to each other.

The optical portion 120 is implemented as an optical system disposed onthe first channel 111 so as to receive an external image. The opticalsystem is formed such that an external image received through theincident surface 121 is transmitted along the X-axis direction. FIG. 4Cillustrates a reflection mirror 122 disposed at the end of the firstchannel 111. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Forinstance, the optical system may be implemented as a refraction andtransmission type for changing an optical path through a prism, etc.,rather than a reflection type.

More specifically, referring to FIG. 3, the output surface 131 of thelaser module 130 is formed to face a height direction (Z-axis direction)of the body 110, and the incident surface 121 is formed to face onepoint on a path of the outputted laser. Once an object for surgery isdisposed on the one point, not only a laser surgery can be performed,but also the optical portion 120 can capture a surgical scene.

For such an operation, the output surface 131 of the laser module 130 isformed to protrude more than the incident surface 121 in the X-axisdirection, and the incident surface 121 is formed to be inclined fromthe output surface 131.

In this case, the incident surface 121 is formed on a plane where theoutput surface 131 of the laser module 130 is tilted based on the X-axisand the Y-axis, respectively. For instance, the incident surface 121 maybe formed on a plane where the output surface 131 has a tilted angle of70° based on the X-axis, and has a tilted angle of 30° based on theY-axis. Further, the incident surface 121 of the optical portion 120 isdisposed on the left side of the X-axis, and the output surface 131 ofthe laser module 130 (or cutting blade of the burr module) is disposedon the right side of the X-axis. The incident surface 121 may be formedto be lower than the output surface 131 of the laser module 130 (orcutting blade of the burr module) in the Z-axis direction. With such aconfiguration, the endoscopic instrument 100 can be manipulated moreeasily.

As shown, an opening 113 is formed at the end of the body 110, such thatthe incident surface 121 and the output surface 131 of the laser module130 are exposed to outside therethrough. The opening 113 is formed suchthat a predetermined part thereof is open in the X-axis direction andthe Z-axis direction, respectively.

In the endoscopic instrument 100 of the present invention, the opticalportion 120 disposed at the first channel 111 may be formed as a fixedtype, such that a position to which the incident surface 121 faces isalways constant. On the contrary, the laser module 130 disposed at thesecond channel 112 may be formed to be withdrawable to outside from thesecond channel 112. More specifically, the second channel 112 may beformed so that the burr module 140 rather than the laser module 130 canbe inserted thereinto.

However, the present invention is not limited to this. For instance, theoptical portion 120 may be formed to be withdrawable to outside from thefirst channel 111. Further, the incident surface 121 may be formed to betilted or movable by an external manipulation.

Referring to FIG. 5, the cutting blade 141 of the burr module 140 isconfigured to cut an object disposed in a direction crossing thelengthwise direction. For instance, the cutting blade 141 may be formedon an outer circumferential surface of the burr module 140. In thiscase, the end of the burr module 140 may have a conical shape, and thecutting blade 141 may be connected up to the conical end. With such astructure, cutting may be performed with respect to not only an objectdisposed in a direction crossing the lengthwise direction, but also anobject disposed at a front side along the lengthwise direction.

In order for the laser module 130 or the burr module 140 to be operatedat the end of the body 110, the partition wall between the first andsecond channels 111, 112 may be formed to be lower at the end of thebody 110. Further, a wall surface of the end of the body 110 may beformed, such that the second channel 112 is lower than the first channel111. With such a structure, the laser module 130 or the burr module 140can be operated more smoothly.

Referring to FIGS. 3 and 5, a water injection opening (W1) and a watersuction opening (W2) may be provided at a lower part of the end of thebody. For instance, the water injection opening (W1) and a passageconnected to the water injection opening (W1) may be disposed below thelaser module 130, and the water suction opening (W2) and a passageconnected to the water suction opening (W2) may be disposed below theoptical portion 120. Water is injected into a human body through thewater injection opening (W1), and pressure for suction is provided tothe water suction opening (W2), such that heat and residue generatedduring a laser surgery or a bone cutting operation are discharged tooutside through the water suction opening (W2). With such a structure,water injected into a human body may be discharged to outside togetherwith heat and residue.

Hereinafter, a surgery method for treating an impingement syndrome usingthe endoscopic instrument 100 will be explained.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a surgery method using the endoscopicinstrument of FIG. 2.

Firstly, the endoscopic instrument is inserted into a human body (S100).In this case, a single hole is punched, and the body 110 of theendoscopic instrument is inserted into the hole. Then, a laser surgeryis performed at a muscle region where an impingement syndrome hasoccurred, using the laser module 130 (S200). In this case, laser isoutput in a direction perpendicular to an introduction direction of thebody 110, and the optical portion 120 captures a laser surgical regionnext to the laser module 130.

Then, the endoscopic instrument 100 is taken out of the human body(S400), or the laser module 130 is withdrawn from the endoscopicinstrument 100. And the laser module 130 is replaced by the burr module140, and then a bone cutting operation is performed (S300). In the caseof taking the endoscopic instrument 100 out of the human body, a bonecutting operation is not performed, but only a laser surgery isperformed for treatment of an impingement syndrome. Alternatively, a newendoscopic instrument mounted with a burr module is inserted into thehuman body through a preformed hole.

On the other hand, in the case of withdrawing the laser module 130 fromthe endoscopic instrument 100, the burr module 140 is inserted into aregion of the laser module 130, for bone cutting. In this case, thelaser module 130 is configured to be inserted into or withdrawn from thesecond channel. Thus, the burr module 140 may be insertable into thesecond channel where the laser module has been withdrawn.

According to the surgery method, a laser surgery can be performedexclusively or together with a bone cutting operation, through a singlepunched hole.

The endoscopic instrument which can implement such a surgery method maybe modified in various manners. Hereinafter, such a modification will beexplained with reference to FIGS. 7 to 10.

FIGS. 7 to 10 are conceptual views illustrating other embodiments of thepresent invention.

Referring to FIG. 7, an incident surface of an optical portion 220 isformed to be inclined in an opposite direction to the incident surfaceof the optical portion 120 aforementioned with reference to FIG. 2. Inthis case, the incident surface is formed to protrude more than anoutput surface of a laser module 230 in an X-axis direction.

As another example, referring to FIG. 8, an incident surface of anoptical portion 320 is disposed on the same position as an outputsurface of a laser module 330 in an X-axis direction. In this case, theincident surface may be implemented as a surface rotated only in theX-axis direction.

The endoscopic instrument of the present invention may be configuredsuch that the laser module and the optical portion are overlapped witheach other in a Z-axis direction. Referring to FIG. 9, an incidentsurface of an optical portion 420 is formed to protrude more than anoutput surface of a laser module 430 in an X-axis direction. An openingof a body may not be formed at the end of the body, but may be formedonly on an outer circumferential surface of the end.

The optical portion 420 is disposed below the laser module 430. And theincident surface of the optical portion 420 protrudes up to a pointwhere the optical portion 420 is not overlapped with the laser module430, thereby facing one point on a path of outputted laser. In thiscase, a partition wall between first and second channels is formed todivide inside of the body in upper and lower directions.

The endoscopic instrument of the present invention may be configuredsuch that positions of the laser module and the optical portion areswitched from each other in right and left directions. FIG. 10illustrates such a case. The same or similar reference numerals will beprovided to the same or similar components as or to components of theaforementioned embodiment, and the same explanations will be omitted.

In the aforementioned embodiment, the laser module is disposed on theright side and the optical portion is disposed on the left side based onthe X-axis, such that a clinician utilizes his or her accumulatedclinical experiences by a method using the laser module (or burr module)on a different position, while viewing a transmitted image using thejoint mirror. However, in this embodiment, a laser module 530 isdisposed on the left side and an optical portion 520 is disposed on theright side based on an X-axis, for development of a novel surgicalmethod. More specifically, the endoscopic instrument of FIG. 10 may forma pair with the endoscopic instrument 100 of FIG. 2. With such astructure, a clinician can select a position of the laser module and theoptical portion, in an optimum manner for surgery for a left object(e.g., left shoulder) or a right object (e.g., right shoulder).

The endoscopic instrument of the present invention is not limited to theaforementioned configuration and method. That is, the endoscopicinstrument of the present invention may be also applicable to anindustrial purpose or a surgery for other parts of a human body. Forinstance, the endoscopic instrument of the present invention may beapplicable to a neural compression syndrome or a wrist syndrome having anarrow surgical region.

As the present features may be embodied in several forms withoutdeparting from the characteristics thereof, it should also be understoodthat the above-described embodiments are not limited by any of thedetails of the foregoing description, unless otherwise specified, butrather should be construed broadly within its scope as defined in theappended claims, and therefore all changes and modifications that fallwithin the metes and bounds of the claims, or equivalents of such metesand bounds are therefore intended to be embraced by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. An endoscopic instrument for surgery for jointsor parts around the joints, comprising: a body extending in a lengthwisedirection, and having a first channel and a second channel parallel toeach other; and an optical portion provided with an incident surfaceformed at an end part of the first channel so as to receive an externalimage, the optical portion disposed at the first channel; and a lasermodule configured to output laser in a direction crossing the lengthwisedirection; and wherein the second channel is formed such that the lasermodule is insertable thereinto, wherein an output surface of the lasermodule is formed to face a height direction of the body perpendicular tothe lengthwise direction, wherein the incident surface is spaced apartfrom the laser module in a widthwise direction of the body, wherein theincident surface is formed on a plane that is tilted relative to theoutput surface of the laser module about an axis of the widthwisedirection and an axis of the lengthwise direction of the body so as toface one point of a target object disposed on a path of the outputlaser.
 2. The endoscopic instrument for surgery for joints or partsaround the joints of claim 1, wherein the output surface of the lasermodule protrudes more than the incident surface in the lengthwisedirection.
 3. The endoscopic instrument for surgery for joints or partsaround the joints of claim 2, wherein the first and second channels arearranged in the widthwise direction of the body perpendicular to thelengthwise direction.
 4. The endoscopic instrument for surgery forjoints or parts around the joints of claim 1, wherein the laser moduleis provided with an optical unit for changing a moving direction of theoutputted laser in the second channel, such that the laser is output ina direction crossing the lengthwise direction.
 5. The endoscopicinstrument for surgery for joints or parts around the joints of claim 1,wherein an opening is formed at an end part of the body, such that theincident surface and the output surface of the laser module are exposedto outside therethrough.
 6. The endoscopic instrument for surgery forjoints or parts around the joints of claim 5, wherein the opening isformed such that a predetermined part thereof is open in the heightdirection and the lengthwise direction of the body, respectively.
 7. Anendoscopic instrument for surgery for joints or parts around the jointshaving a body formed along an X-axis, wherein the body includes: anoptical portion for receiving an external image; and a first channelwhere the optical portion is arranged; and a laser module configured tooutput laser; and a second channel formed such that the laser module isinsertable thereinto, formed along the X-axis, and arranged close to thefirst channel along a Y-axis, and wherein the laser module is arrangedsuch that an output surface of the laser module faces a target disposedon a Z axis, wherein the optical unit is spaced apart from the lasermodule along the Y axis, wherein the optical unit is tilted about theX-axis and the Y-axis, so as to receive an image of the object facingthe laser module.
 8. The endoscopic instrument for surgery for joints orparts around the joints of claim 7, wherein an incident surface of thelaser module is formed to be inclined from a sectional surface of thefirst channel, such that the optical portion captures an image disposedon a path of laser outputted from the output surface.